3 months: tiny talker

After 2 kids' worth of effort to get a good baby photo ... I got a new fancy camera (yay!) and it's paid for itself already - look at this happy baby!!

Little Anika at 3 months is our little talker of the family: she "oooos" and "goooos" at every opportunity - her favorite game (well, okay, she only knows one game) is a "conversation" - I say "aaahh" she says "oooohhh" ... back and forth and back and forth. She has an amazing attention span to match her huge observant eyes, and no one can complain about the 8-9 hours of sleep every night. She rolled over for the first time a few weeks ago, trying to keep up with her busy siblings. Now if I can just teach her to sleep by herself ...

Little Miles gave us a good scare yesterday. He got an olive pit lodged in his esophagus ("pit stuck, mama, mouth hurts") ... and couldn't get it out, or get anything else down. After several hours of me dancing around and trying not to play doctor at home ... he got it up on his own (details omitted). Yikes. We're so glad he's smiling again.

a good read

The latest trick for keeping Nica happy in the car - a favorite book! Thankfully reading doesn't seem to make her car-sick.

giving thanks

 Thanksgiving Day: our first all-family exercise was a raging success!
Adelaide on her bike, Miles and Anika napping in the chariot, and Joe, my dad and I ran for a full hour!!

No complaints, but with all of the coordinating that was required, I had to wonder: would it save time for us to each run alone for an hour than to fuss with trying to run together? Probably a wash at best.

Little Anika has been better known around here as Tiny-ka, Nica, Nica-nic, or my favorite Ana-Nika (any of which Miles can say, although he can't say Anika).  Despite her name, she's not too Tiny-ka anymore: weighed in at 9 lbs 13 oz and 22 inches, despite being a week early for her 2-month check-up. Good grief! She doesn't seem to eat all that often, so all I can figure is that she's fattening up because she sleeps so much. Solution: more tummy time for Tiny-ka.

Miles is Two!

 Miles celebrated his second birthday this past weekend. He had an awesome swim party (complete with swimming pool cake). He absolutely had a blast -- he was so excited to have all of favorite people swimming or watching - over and over we heard "hi Margaret!!" and "Grandma watching" with such excitement. He is fun to watch in the pool on any normal day, jumping in with such enthusiasm and splashing like he owns the place, but a birthday swim was especially fun. We must have gone down the water slide 50 times.

Over the past month, his skills have really blossomed - he's turned into a two-year old!  Just this past week, he surprised us with counting to 10. Although I never before heard him say a number past 2, he now regularly counts to 10 correctly. He must have worked it all out in his little brain and waited until he had it perfect before spitting out those numbers all at once. Miles also has learned his pronouns - me, you, I, my - a lovely step in communication. And he has figured out how to play "imagination" games. My favorite is "going fishing" - he has a little striped cloth bag that he loads up with acorns or any random thing, slings it over his shoulder and announces, "Bye! Tomorrow!" (Miles, where are you going?) "Going fishing! A big one!!" -- This is just hilarious because I have no idea how he knows what fishing is, or why he wants to catch a big fish. He's never been fishing, and as far as I know, he doesn't even know anyone who goes fishing or have a book about fishing. Where did he get this idea? How does he know what "fishing" is? And how does he know to catch a "big" fish?  I have not a clue. Does this stuff come naturally to all boys?

In any case, we are very proud of our very independent little guy. He has such a joyful personality, always laughing and smiling, and it's such a treat to watch all of his recent developments

the best thing ever!

One month into life with little Anika, and I am positive that the third baby is the best thing ever!  Anika is healthy and happy, and I am loving every single minute with her. A few of her many great features to remember:

1. Although most of her hair is dark, she has two little blond streaks behind her right ear, making us wonder if she'll end up with dark or light hair?
2. She has bright interested eyes. Whenever she is awake (which is not too often), she is wide-eyed and watching! She studies her black-and-white pictures and mobile with great intensity. I wonder if she'll be a "thinker" to match this early studious disposition.
3. Her little head fits perfectly under my chin. Fortunately for me, she doesn't sleep well if I set her down, so I get to carry her around, head under my chin, all the time, loving the smell of her sweet baby head.
4. This past week, she started smiling. She smiles at me, and she smiles at herself in the mirror!  Just adorable.

My midwife says that third babies grow up bathed in love, and that has certainly been her experience of the  first month of life. We all love you, sweet baby girl!

10-4, good buddy!

 Anika Jo Nelson joined the world on Thursday evening at 8:17pm.
My labor was lovely (intense but short) - we went in early (about 2 hours before she was born) and had time to feel settled before she joined us.
We got "skin time" right away, and as soon as she landed on my belly, she wiggled up to feed - a good eater straight out of the shoot!
She weighed in at 7lbs, 11 oz and 19.5 lbs (right between the sizes of Adelaide and Miles).

From the start she has had long periods of alertness, open-eyed and aware. Adelaide and Miles so far are doing great. Miles frequently asks to "hold baby, hold baby" and Adelaide loves to be the helpful big sister - running for diapers and "giving taps" after baby eats.
Baby Anika is the most beautiful completion of our little family team that I could have imagined. We're a little bit overwhelmed, but mostly thrilled to treasure this last tiny addition.

top 5 list

In just an hour, my official due date will have passed, and Norbert the dragon is still comfortably kicking around in my belly, no hint of transition into the real world. As I walked around the neighborhood today, enjoying my huge belly and trying not to waddle, I thought about why I love being pregnant. 

5. The attention: This is likely the closest I'll ever be to a celebrity. Everywhere I go, people smile at me, random strangers start conversations (on my walk: the totally-grunge with headphones in his ears and untied laces who I least expect to make eye contact with me, "hey! there's a baby in there! what kind?" with bright eyes and a huge smile - guaranteed he'd never talk to non-pregnant me). Whether male or female, young or old, a majority of the people I encounter no matter where I go, are interested in my belly, and it makes them happy! I never have to sit on the floor, or stand on the bus. I always get first priority in line. And any stupid things I say are attributed to "baby brain" as if it wasn't my fault! Although I don't always love the attention, it's pretty fun at times, and very shortly, I'll never again be as special, or earn as many smiles, as right now!

4. The leeway: my unrealistic expectations are totally reasonable. For example: over the summer when I was working nights, Joe would take the kids out for breakfast so I could sleep. One morning he brought me something cheesy from a bakery, and I complained, "please only bring home healthy food, nothing fatty and gross like that." The very next day, they got breakfast burritos, and I was appalled that he didn't bring me one. Although the contradiction there is obvious, when he relayed this story at our weekend camping trip, he got no sympathy: there was consensus that I should change my mind at least daily, and that he should anticipate my indecision. For the non-pregnant, it's hard to get away with that nonsense!

3. The human body is amazing, and the journey towards motherhood must be one of the most fascinating of all human abilities. To gain (and hopefully loose) almost 40 pounds in just a couple of months, to double my blood volume and cardiac output, to triple my abdominal girth, to drop my immune system sufficiently to allow another person to inhabit my belly without rejection, all while (mostly) continuing to function like a normal person ... any of these feats would alone be absolutely incredible, but in the context of pregnancy, it's all just par for the course. Not to mention all that labor and delivery business of getting the baby out into the world. Incredible. It's such a privilege to be able to experience this. 

2. The company: each of these 3 have shared a different part of my pathway towards becoming a doctor, and each of them have been valuable companions at tough times. They have shared lots of study time, long hours at the hospital, scary and sleepy call nights, and starting my first real job. Having a little wiggling being in my belly, a little foot to hold under my ribs, is like the grown-up version of an imaginary friend or a security blanket that comes everywhere - 9 months of an internal support system who provides constant companionship, always agrees with me, and occasionally has a good idea that I get to take credit for. I'm going to be a little sad when I'm all alone again.

1. New life!! Absolutely the best part is knowing that there's a new person, about to join our family and the world, with every possibility still possible. Will this little person be kind or smart or thoughtful or silly? Will he be athletic or artistic or studious? Will she one day be president? Or learn to belly dance? For such a brief moment, I have the ability to nourish and nurture this person, and hopefully start him/her on a path to become a valuable citizen in the world. The responsibility is so enormous that I'll still cry in terror if I think too much about it. But this great responsibility starts so simply: I am growing a person!!

We are trying to relish these last few days (moments?) with Miles and Adelaide in harmony, before the balance is again upset to make room for another. And I am trying to treasure my co-inhabitant, before a new chapter of life begins. I'm already a little nostalgic that soon my last little one will start his/her journey towards independence, and the joys of pregnancy will be only memories.